Oman revisited: great country, shame about the turtles

As a defender with Sedar FC, a club playing 50km outside Muscat, Abdullah doubtless knew all about stonewalling.

He dusted down and reproduced his skills each time he was challenged him on the question of turtles.

Abdullah, it must be said, was greatly responsible for three-and-a-bit magical days in Oman. It may seem posh to hire not only a Land Cruiser (whisper it; I'm supposed to loathe 4x4s), but a driver, too. Yet it is beyond question that we saw a huge amount more than would have been likely without him.

On turtles, however, Abdullah is on the blasé side. When we joined a group waiting on the beach at Ras al Hadd in the hope of seeing them come ashore to lay eggs, he warned us to prepare for disappointment. As often as not, he said, people went away without having seen a thing.

He made us feel fortunate to have passed by a tank with a few newly hatched specimens.

And luckier still to have seen two green turtles swivelling in the large holes they'd dug in the sand. I say green with the confidence of someone who has read that this is the colour of the turtles that frequent these parts of the Omani coast. To the naked eye, the ones we saw might have been no more than piles of wobbly sand.

No picture I took of the spectacle is worth publishing here. If that is a reflection of my equipment and/or photographic prowess, it is also indicative of how little we managed to see. And it is fair to say that Abdullah showed every sign of wanting to be away as quickly as possible.

Next morning, after others at our little hotel - or, rather, collection of huts with dhow-shaped reception and restaurant - boasted of all the turtles they had watched, Abdullah shrugged his shoulders. And when we said they'd also returned first thing to catch more activity, he simply questioned their powers of recollection. "In the morning, only picnicking," he said.

But that is the minor grumble out of the way. Turtles are clearly his blind spot.

Pretty much everything we did see was seen as a result of Abdullah's knowledge, driving skills and attention to detail.

I would have driven the 4x4 A to B, missing the wadis, sinkholes, off-the-beaten-track villages and mountain lanes that help to make Oman such an invigorating place to visit.

For sure, I wouldn't have indulged in 20 minutes of expert dune-bashing on the Wahiba Sands. Abdullah was particularly proud of being able to negotiate the steep descents using a manual gearbox.

If you would like to read a little more about my trip to Oman, I have written about it in my weekly column at The National. See this link. I may get round to posting a few more photos in one of the Salut! satellites.

Comments

[Dumdad]

Did you have turtle soup while you were there?

[Gigi]

That first photo is very romantic...much more romantic than turtles, I think.

[Segnad]

I'm glad that you had fun in Oman. I know the disappointment that some tourists have to go through with the turtles is really common... especially if you have to walk in the night among all the 'turtle holes' !!

[Oman Turtles]

The Green Turtles are a great sight – awe-inspiring. Here is a picture of a Green Turtle in Oman going back to the sea http://blog.omanholiday.co.uk/blog/_archives/2007/6/27/3050894.html . Amazing how it manages to haul its heavy body back to the sea after laying sooo many eggs.

[bath mateus]

Wow it’s nice posting, I like it.Adding more information it will be better....
Bathmate